SOUTH BEND — Under a new plea agreement, a Granger man would not serve prison time for illegally having prescription drugs at a June house party where two brothers overdosed on painkillers.Kyle Treber, 19, pleaded guilty Tuesday morning to a single felony charge of illegal possession of narcotics. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop three counts of dealing narcotics and accepted terms calling for a judge to sentence him to 2 1/2 years on probation.Treber was first charged in July. Authorities alleged Treber that he brought a bottle of oxycodone pills and passed it around at the June 13 party at a home on Bryanton Court, though he was never linked directly to the drugs that contributed to the deaths of 19-year-old Nick Savage and 18-year-old Jack Savage.The Savage brothers were found unconscious in their parents' home in the early-morning hours of June 14. A coroner ruled they died after overdosing on a combination of oxycodone and alcohol. The case highlighted the upward trend of prescription drug abuse over the past several years.

In court documents, prosecutors alleged Treber passed the pill bottle to several people, but investigators found two other pill bottles where the Savage brothers could have gotten drugs.Appearing in a blue dress shirt and khakis Tuesday before St. Joseph Superior Court Judge Jane Woodward Miller, Treber responded with a soft "yes, your honor" or "no, your honor" when prompted.He and an older woman quickly left the courthouse after the hearing, and defense attorney James Korpal said he had no comment on Treber's behalf.Woodward Miller is scheduled to sentence Treber on Jan. 20. If he is sentenced to probation and adheres to the terms of supervised release, the plea agreement provides that Woodward Miller could vacate Treber's felony conviction and reduce it to a misdemeanor when he completes his sentence.Eighteen-year-old Lauren Schwindaman, who hosted the party at her parents' home in the 15000 block of Bryanton Court, is charged with a misdemeanor count of providing alcohol to minors. Prosecutors alleged she encouraged friends to bring alcohol to the party.The deaths of Nick and Jack Savage, both recent Penn High School graduates and hockey players, led to an outpouring of grief and support, as hundreds of people packed the Penn gymnasium for a public visitation.But it also made the brothers two more casualties of the dual epidemics of prescription painkiller and heroin abuse, which have killed dozens of victims across all categories of age, gender, race and economic status throughout St. Joseph County and the surrounding area over the past five years.

So one would have to wonder why some charges were dropped, I recall all the hype and witch hunt when they claimed and went after a bar owner after a crash killed someone. They claimed the bar was responsible because the driver who hit and killed another driver had been at the bar getting drunk. Who does this young man know that allows for such a light charge in the deaths of two young men? Just questioning the plea deal in this one compared to other cases.

CHECK OUT OUR DYING CITY AND THE CORRUPTION WITHIN YOU DECIDE FOR YOURSELF.